ST PAUL, Minn. — Minnesotans are closer to being able to buy cannabis products now that a judge has approved draft rules for the market. 

According to the Minnesota Office of Cannabis Management, an administrative law judge approved draft rules governing Minnesota’s adult-use cannabis market without making changes. 

The rules will go into effect later this month, and the Office of Cannabis Management will be able to start issuing business licenses to applicants, a state spokesperson said in a news release. 

Officials called it an “important milestone” in launching Minnesota’s cannabis market.  

“The adoption of rules is the most significant step to launching the cannabis market because the office cannot issue business licenses until they are in place,” said Interim Director Eric Taubel in a statement. “The judge’s approval of our proposed rules without changes shows that we did our work to engage with the prospective cannabis business community and put together a reasonable structure for ensuring consistency, safety, and equity in Minnesota’s cannabis industry.”   

There are four license types: Cultivator, mezzobusiness, manufacturer, and retailer. Each has caps in state law, and applicants will be part of lottery drawings for the distribution of those licenses. 

Recreational marijuana became legal in Minnesota on Aug. 1, 2023, making it the 23rd state to do so. Lines stretched around the block that day when the first dispensary opened on the Red Lake Nation. Tribal governments did not have to wait for the state’s licensing process. 

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